Friday, November 20, 2009

Mormon official accused of molestation

It’s rare for a Mormon to face charges of child molestation. Yet Mormon official Eugene Bill Knox, the Mormon Church, and the Boy Scouts of America stand accused of abusing two boys three decades ago.

The suit claims the three brothers were children when they told the Mormon church that they had been abused hundreds of times by church official, Eugene Bill Knox, who was also their Boy Scout leader. Kelly Clark is their attorney.

I have a special spot in my heart for the Mormon church. I’ll watch this case, and the two other cases reported this week, very closely.

Seattle case: Dustin Hall

In the Seattle case, a man now in his early 40s claims he and other boys were abused in the late 1970s by Dustin Hall, an assistant scoutmaster chosen by the church's Shelton Ward near Olympia.

The plaintiff said in a statement released through his lawyer that the abuse — and his failure to protect the others — haunts him.

Portland Case: Michael Simms

The lawsuit filed in Portland on behalf of a man who is now 46 claims a Mormon youth leader abused him between 1974 and 1977. The suit claims the abuse was reported to a church bishop but never communicated to law enforcement.